Rail Road Bridge over Burnshirt River
This bridge is on ITS 71 in Templeton. It is an old RR bridge for trains. It was a narrow bridge also known as the dinosaur bridge. It was know as this due to the loud moans that would come in the silence of the night as the groomers drag rode up against the metal railings creating a loud almost prehistoric sound. This sound will be heard no more. The groomer drag is 8'-4" wide and the bridge was just 8'-6" wide. This made the operators job extremely difficult in crossing this bridge. After many seasons of seeking permission to fix the bridge the DCR gave us permission to do it this season. After acquiring permission from the town Conservation Commission and filing all of the paperwork with the DCR we were on our way. The first step was to get quotes on the lumber. After seeing that the lumber would be way out of budget, club president Gerry and his brother Steve donated the logs and arranged to have Conkey lumber of New Salem mill the logs. Central Mass Tree of Westminster donated the truck for Gerry to haul the wood to the mill. The wood was milled and Glenn Hines excavation donated his truck and his driver,Donny, to move it to Dick Pelloquins house to unload it. After finalizing all of the dates and permissions with the DCR we were all set and ready to go. It took 3 days to complete the project and we now have a bridge with over 12 feet of space for our groomer to cross. The bridge is made of all red oak and the main decking is 4 inch thick oak. The side rails are all notched out 4X4 oak posts and is all timber screwed together. This bridge was the main obstacle to allow access for all groomers. we can now move any groomer to any spot north of rte 122 and they will all fit with ease. It took a long time to plan and put all other projects on hold for the 2010 season but in the end it was well worth it. All items were donated to the DCR for free and the end product was phenomenal. Thanks to al that helped with this project, without your help it would not have been accomplished.
Click on picture to enlarge!!
